税抜き

• Reading: ぜいぬき
• Romaji: zeinuki
• Kanji breakdown: 税 (zei) — tax; 抜 (nu) — extract, pull out
• Pronunciation: /zeː.nɯ.ki/

Meaning

Tax excluded; excluding tax; before tax. Used for prices that do not include consumption tax.

A noun and no-adjective indicating that a price or amount does not include tax. The counterpart to 税込み (zeikomi, tax-included). Common on older price tags and in wholesale contexts: 税抜き価格 (pre-tax price), 税抜きで (excluding tax). Since 2021, Japan requires 税込み display in consumer-facing retail, but 税抜き is still common in business-to-business transactions.

Examples

1. この値段は税抜きなので消費税が別途かかります。 This price is before tax, so consumption tax will be added separately.
2. 税抜きだと二千円ですが税込みだと二千二百円です。 It's 2,000 yen before tax, but 2,200 yen with tax included.
3. 法律で税抜き表示のみは禁止されている。 Displaying prices in pre-tax terms only is prohibited by law.

Usage Guide

Context: shopping, pricing, accounting

Tone: informative

Origin & History

From 税 (zei, tax) and 抜き (nuki, excluding — from 抜く, to pull out). Literally 'tax pulled out' — the tax has been removed from the displayed price. Emerged alongside Japan's consumption tax system.

Cultural Context

Era: Modern

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal